Valenzuela wants number coding scheme back; MMDA to study proposal
MANILA, Philippines — Valenzuela City Mayor Rex Gatchalian on Thursday said he wants the return of the number coding scheme and truck ban to help ease the traffic congestion in the city.
“Walang number coding scheme so iyong volume ng sasakyan talagang puno puno ngayon. (We don’t have a number coding scheme so there is a high volume of vehicles on our roads.),” said Gatchalian over ABS-CBN Teleradyo.
“Sabi ko nga, i-sa-sa-suggest ko sa MMDA [Metropolitan Manila Development Authority] na kahit sa Valenzuela man lang ibalik na iyong number coding scheme at iyong truck ban this Christmas season,” he added.
(I will suggest to MMDA to return the number coding scheme even only at Valenzuela as well as the truck ban this Christmas season.)
The Valenzuela City government is also requesting a return of the truck ban to regulate the number of trucks entering Valenzuela during rush hour.
In a separate online press conference on Thursday, MMDA General Manager Jojo Garcia said they will study the proposal to return the Unified Vehicular Volume Reduction Program (UVVRP) or the number coding scheme because public transportation remains limited during the pandemic.
“Pag-aaralan natin. Una muna, sa coding, iyong sa coding kasi, hindi pa ganoon ka normal ang capacity ng public transport natin. I think 60-70 percent palang ang laman niyan,” said Garcia, reacting on Gatchalian’s request to return number coding scheme.
(We will study that. If we will allow coding, our public transport is not yet at a normal capacity. It only has a capacity of 60 to 70 percent, I think.)
He said they will also be swamped with requests from frontliners to be exempted from the number coding scheme.
“Pangalawa, kapag nag-coding, I am expecting loads of request for exemption — yung medical frontliners [at] essential workers,” he added.
(If we reimpose coding, we will expect loads of requests for exemption from medical frontliners and other essential workers.)
The MMDA has since lifted the number coding scheme and truck ban in Metro Manila during the quarantine to make sure that the delivery of essential services is unhampered.
Makati City however has its own modified number coding scheme, which was enforced when the National Capital Region was placed under general community quarantine last June 1.
